How Can You Prove Workplace Retaliation?

 Posted on January 26, 2026 in Discrimination & Retaliation

Workplace retaliation happens when your employer punishes you for doing something the law protects. Maybe you reported discrimination, filed a workers' compensation claim, or asked for family leave. If your boss then demoted you, cut your hours, or made your work life miserable, that could be illegal retaliation.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reports that retaliation is now the most common claim in workplace discrimination cases, making up over 40 percent of all charges filed. This means almost half of the people who report workplace problems say their employer struck back at them for speaking up.

Proving retaliation can feel very intimidating, especially when you are worried about your job and your family's financial security. Understanding what counts as retaliation and how to document it is the first step towards getting justice.

At Freedman Law, LLC, our Howard County, MD employment law attorney serves employees who have been wrongfully retaliated against at work in 2026. We understand how to put the law to work for you. Call us at 410-290-6232 today.

Can Negative Performance Reviews Be Retaliation?

A negative performance review can be retaliation if it happens after you engage in protected activity. Protected activity means doing something the law says your employer cannot punish you for. This includes reporting:

• harassment

• Workplace discrimination

• Safety violations

• Wage theft

If you had good performance reviews for years and suddenly get a bad one right after you complained about discrimination, that timing matters. The key question is whether the negative review was honest or whether your employer created it to justify firing you or denying you a promotion.

Maryland law protects workers from retaliation under several statutes. The Maryland Fair Employment Practices Act specifically makes it illegal for employers to retaliate against employees who oppose discriminatory practices or participate in investigations. This protection covers you whether you work for a private company or a government agency.

Your employer might claim the review was based on real performance problems. But if you can show the review was false or exaggerated, and it came after you made a complaint, you may have a retaliation case.

What Are Common Examples of Employer Retaliation?

Retaliation can take many forms. Some are obvious, like getting fired or demoted. Others are more subtle but still illegal. Here are common ways employers retaliate:

Direct Actions

Direct retaliation includes firing you, demoting you to a lower position, cutting your pay or hours, denying you a promotion you earned, or transferring you to a less desirable location or shift.

Hostile Work Environment

Sometimes retaliation looks like creating a hostile work environment. Your supervisor might:

• Exclude you from important meetings

• Give you impossible deadlines

• Micromanage everything you do

• Spread false rumors about your work

• Write you up for minor issues while ignoring the same behavior in other employees

Subtle Punishment

Employers could also retaliate by refusing to provide training opportunities, blocking you from projects that could advance your career. They might give you duties far below your job description or schedule you for the worst shifts when you previously had better ones.

The law says any action that would discourage a reasonable person from making a complaint or reporting illegal conduct counts as retaliation. Even if you still have your job, if your employer made things harder for you after you spoke up, that can be illegal.

Can an Employer Retaliate Against You for Taking Family or Medical Leave?

Your employer cannot legally retaliate against you for taking leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act, which people often call FMLA. This federal law lets eligible workers take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for serious health conditions, to care for family members, or for certain military family situations.

Maryland also has its own protections under the Maryland Flexible Leave Act and the Maryland Healthy Working Families Act. These laws protect your right to take leave without facing punishment when you return.

Retaliation for taking leave might look like:

• Getting fired shortly after you come back from medical leave

• Losing a promotion that was promised before your leave

• Being placed on a performance improvement plan immediately after returning

• Getting assigned to different or worse job duties

• Facing disciplinary actions for issues your employer ignored before your leave

Your employer cannot count your approved FMLA leave as an absence that leads to discipline. They also cannot refuse to let you return to your same job or an equivalent position with the same pay and benefits.

How Can I Prove My Employer Retaliated Against Me?

Proving retaliation requires showing three main things. First, you engaged in protected activity, which means you did something the law protects, like reporting discrimination or filing a complaint. Second, your employer took a negative action against you. Third, there is a connection between your protected activity and the negative action.

The timing of events is often your strongest evidence. If you filed a harassment complaint on Monday and got fired on Friday, that close timing suggests retaliation. Courts look carefully at actions that happen days or weeks after protected activity.

Document Contact and Any Examples of Retaliation

Save all emails between you and your employer. Keep copies of your performance reviews from before and after you complained. Write down what was said in meetings with your supervisor. Save text messages related to your complaint or the negative treatment. Keep records of any discipline or warnings you received. Note who else witnessed what happened.

Doing this will strengthen your claim and make it more likely that you can receive compensation for how you were treated.

Contact a Howard County, MD Employment Lawyer for Employees Today

Workplace retaliation cases involve complicated state and federal laws. An experienced Elliott City, Maryland employment law attorney for employees who handles cases in both state and federal court can investigate your situation, gather evidence, and fight for your rights.

At Freedman Law, LLC, we represent employees who face retaliation. You have rights. Call us at 410-290-6232 to discuss your case and learn about your legal options.